Lulua woman stacking pottery for firing, Bakwa Balaie village, near Kananga, Congo (Democratic Republic)

"Instead of firing in a kiln, African ceramics are placed in a shallow pit or stacked in the open, over a layer of dry brushwood, covered with more wood and very quickly fired, at a relatively temperature. Firing can take anywhere from twenty minutes to a few hours to complete. The potter can control the firing and vary the resulting color of the ceramics by varying the amount of oxygen reaching the ceramics." [Darish P., 1990: Fired Brilliance: Ceramic Vessels from Zaire. University of Missouri-Kansas City Gallery of Art]. This photograph was taken when Eliot Elisofon traveled to Africa from March 17, 1970 to July 17, 1970.